Race Incidents

Pre-race: Felipe Massa underlines how slippery conditions are with a big slide during one of his reconnaissance laps. Jenson Button and Kazuki Nakajima are still in their garages at 13.45 hrs and will start from the pit lane.

Lap 1: Safety Car start. Sebastian Vettel - a first pole position for both the German and Toro Rosso - leads away from Heikki Kovalainen, Mark Webber, Nico Rosberg, Massa, Jarno Trulli, Fernando Alonso, Timo Glock, Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica, Giancarlo Fisichella, David Coulthard, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton, Rubens Barrichello, Nelson Piquet, Adrian Sutil, Button and Nakajima. Sebastien Bourdais, fourth in qualifying, stalls on the grid. He starts one lap behind.

Lap 3: Race starts. Vettel pulls 2.0s clear. Glock passes Alonso. Kubica passes Heidfeld.

Lap 4: Alonso repasses Glock. Raikkonen and Hamilton pass Coulthard. Button passes Sutil. Nakajima passes them both.

Lap 5: Vettel posts a 1m33.151s to lead by 5.2s.

Lap 7: Vettel gets sideways at Turn Five and vaults the kerbs. Glock spins at Turn One and drops from eighth to ninth. Raikkonen and Hamilton are very close to each other, behind Fisichella who lies 11th.

Lap 8: Vettel laps in 1m34.972s. He leads by 6.3s.

Lap 9: Raikkonen passes Fisichella into Turn One.

Lap 10: Vettel leads by 6.6s. Hamilton passes Fisichella at Turn One.

Lap 11: Hamilton passes Raikkonen for 11th.

Lap 13: Massa passes Rosberg into Turn One but loses out at the exit. He misses the apex of Turn Six, takes fourth but gives the place back. Fisichella bangs his front wing on Coulthard's rear wheel at Turn One. It subsequently breaks and the Italian slides off the road at Turn 11 to retire.

Lap 14: Rosberg repasses Massa. Hamilton passes Heidfeld.

Lap 15: Massa gets ahead of Rosberg once more, at Turn One. The Brazilian laps in 1m34.955s, the race's best yet.

Lap 16: Massa laps in 1m34.950s. Hamilton passes Glock. Barrichello pits.

Lap 17: Hamilton passes Kubica. He now lies eighth.

Lap 18: The leader pits and drops to fourth. Kovalainen leads from Webber. Massa posts a 1m34.789s.

Lap 19: Hamilton passes Alonso at Turn One. Glock passes Kubica.

Lap 20: Massa goes faster again: 1m34.457s. He is 11.0s behind Webber.

Lap 21: Glock passes Alonso.

Lap 22: The top three all pit, as do Button and the lapped Bourdais. Vettel leads. Hamilton passes Trulli into Turn One but misses the apex of Turn Two and gives the place back as they exit the corner.

Lap 23: Hamilton passes Trulli.

Lap 24: Hamilton passes Rosberg. He's now second on the road, 3.7s behind Vettel. Raikkonen passes Heidfeld.

Lap 25: Fastest lap to Hamilton: 1m34.324s. He trails the more heavily fuelled Vettel by 1.7s. Glock pits.

Lap 26: Hamilton cuts his arrears to 1.1s. Trulli, Raikkonen and Sutil pit.

Lap 27: Hamilton pits and drops to 10th.

Lap 28: Vettel leads Kovalainen by 12.4s. Rosberg and Coulthard pit.

Lap 29: Heidfeld pits, as does Bourdais (still one lap down). Raikkonen passes Glock.

Lap 30: Alonso pits and comes out on normal wets.

Lap 31: Raikkonen passes Trulli. Nakajima pits.

Lap 33: With 20 laps to go, Vettel leads Kovalainen by 11.8s. Massa, Glock and Rosberg all pit.

Lap 34: Kovalainen, Kubica and Webber pit for normal wets.

Lap 35: Webber spins at Ascari. Raikkonen and Trulli pit.

Lap 36: Vettel pits and rejoins with his lead intact. Hamilton and Piquet pit, too. Massa laps in 1m33.601s.

Lap 37: Vettel leads Kovalainen by 9.5s. Kubica, Alonso, Heidfeld, Massa, Hamilton and Webber complete the top eight. Sutil pits and spins at the first chicane upon rejoining.

Lap 38: Hamilton laps in 1m32.869s - 1.5s quicker than Vettel.

Lap 39: Piquet passes Button.

Lap 40: Kovalainen reduces his arrears to 10.8s. Massa passes Heidfeld at Turn One but misses the apex of Turn Two and gives back the place immediately.

Lap 41: Vettel extends his lead to 11.3s.

Lap 43: Piquet passes Coulthard. Raikkonen and Glock pass Nakajima. Barrichello pits.

Lap 44: Fastest lap to Raikkonen: 1m32.733s.

Lap 45: Raikkonen laps in 1m32.595s: he passes Coulthard.

Lap 46: Kubica laps in 1m32.366s, Webber in 1m32.014s, Raikkonen in 1m31.691s.

Lap 48: Raikkonen passes Piquet.

Lap 49: Webber and Hamilton brush wheels as the Australian tries an outside pass at Turn One. He slithers down the escape road, then allows Hamilton back ahead. Raikkonen laps in 1m29.844s - almost two seconds quicker than the leader. Glock passes Coulthard.

Lap 50: Coulthard and Nakajima touch at Parabolica. The Scot pits for a new nose.

Lap 51: Raikkonen laps in 1m29.649s.

Lap 52: Raikkonen posts a 1m29.164s.

Lap 53: Vettel becomes the youngest world championship grand prix winner, finishing 12.5s clear of Kovalainen. Kubica is third from Alonso, Heidfeld, Massa, Hamilton and Webber. Raikkonen sets another fastest lap: 1m28.047s.